James Webb Space Telescope:
We Can See the Beginning
Official NASA-supported Community Event to prepare for the launch of James Webb Space Telescope!
Friday, October 15, 2021 at 7:00PM
Christa McAuliffe Center for Integrated Science Learning
Framingham State University, Framingham, MA
Speaker: Dr. Kathryn Flanagan, Space Telescope Science Institute
Program Description:
The Christa McAuliffe Center is hosting an official NASA-sponsored Webb Space Telescope Community Event to celebrate the launch of the telescope, currently planned on December 18, 2021. The keynote speaker for the evening is Dr. Kathryn Flanagan, Astronomer Emerita at the Space Telescope Science Institute and former Webb mission head. Dr. Flanagan will introduce us to the largest astrophysics mission in NASA's history and the science it will return. The keynote will be preceded by a short multimedia presentation introducing some of the science goals and questions that will be explored by the Webb Telescope.
Keynote Summary:
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is the largest astrophysics mission in NASA's history, currently planned to launch on December 18, 2021. With a segmented mirror extending 6 meters across, and a sunshield the size of a tennis court, this mammoth observatory is folded up for launch, and unfurls as it travels to its final orbit a million miles away. JWST was designed to see the first galaxies forming shortly after the Big Bang, and has been nicknamed the “First Light Machine." But its infrared sensitivity allows it to peer into dusty environments, making it the perfect instrument to explore the regions where stars and planets form, and to trace how galaxies have evolved over time. JWST's potential is so transformative for astronomy that three international space agencies – NASA, ESA and the Canadian Space Agency – have partnered together to bring it to launch. Dr. Kathryn Flanagan, astronomer emerita at the Space Telescope Science Institute, will introduce us to this marvelous facility and the science it will return.
Speaker: Dr. Kathryn Flanagan, Space Telescope Science Institute
Dr. Kathryn Flanagan holds an astronomer emerita appointment at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI), where she has served as JWST mission head, Deputy Director and Interim Director. The Institute is responsible for the science operations of the Hubble Space Telescope, as well as the mission and science operations of its successor, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).
Dr. Flanagan came to the Institute in 2007 to head the Mission Office for JWST, with responsibility for developing the JWST Science and Operations Center. In her early career, she earned her PhD in physics at MIT, where she began working in the field of X-ray astronomy, with special interest in developing new instruments for space. She became part of the research staff at Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and MIT, and she has worked on multiple flight instruments.
She has participated in NASA’s advisory structure, co-chairing strategic planning documents and serving on advisory committees. She has been active in astronomical community organizations, and was recently honored by election as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She has been active in education, beginning with service as a Peace Corps volunteer teaching math and physics in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and is a strong advocate for science outreach to the public and the “next generation.”
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Interest for this event may surpass actual seats available in the planetarium. It is important that the McAuliffe Center be notified immediately if you can no longer attend in-person and need to cancel your registration. Pre-registering using this form and arriving to the event 10 minutes before start time (6:50PM) is the best way to ensure your seat(s) in the planetarium. We will have an overflow space with event livestream in the Center.
Parking will be available in the Maynard Road or Salem End Road parking lots. Once parked, follow the signs to the McAuliffe Center.
GENERAL POLICIES:
Masks are required for all.
Cell phones must be silenced - use of phones for any purpose is not permitted during planetarium programs.
No strollers are allowed in the McAuliffe Center/FSU Planetarium.
No food or drink is allowed in the McAuliffe Center/FSU Planetarium.
Resources:
More information about Webb:
Webb and NASA social media channels: